Arriving in Auckland
I arrived in Auckland the day it seemed everyone was leaving. It was Easter weekend, and apparently that’s when everyone heads elsewhere. Which is what my uni friend RJ did meaning I had his room! (Thanks RJ).
I landed and got into a taxi to Ponsonby which cost about $75, (30 GBP - I don’t have the pound sign on my laptop!). I dragged my ridiculous bag with me and didn’t dare unpack too much as would need to find an Air bnb for the next week or so until I found the van I wanted. Ponsonby is an awesome bit of Auckland with lots of bars, shops and restaurants. Reminded me a bit of Bristol! I was warned in every bar that you had to order food if you wanted a drink over Easter, I’m pretty sure that is also meant for alcohol but I still ordered two lunches from different places - has to test the local cuisine right?
I made the most of tourist mode that weekend. On my first day I walked into the city center to visit the Sky Tower and Weta Unleashed - though I didn’t do the actual tour but the gift shop was nerdy enough to satisfy my LOTR needs and spent a decent amount. The Sky tower was packed but still worth doing to tick off the list. We’d gone 20 years ago but all I could remember was my sister being two young to do the bungee jumping and the only one who wanted to do it. (Maybe this year sis?)
My second day was spent at Auckland Zoo on a very hot day. I saw a baby tiger for the first time and it looked just like my big beanie baby tiger teddy I had as a child. I walked around Western Springs and ran away from the scary geese before catching an Uber to Curious AF drinks bottle shop where I bought packs of mixed mocktail cans, wine and a bottle of 0% sparkling that I haven’t popped yet. The day after was a long walk on a beautiful day touring the harbor until my poor toes bled. I got my self some hot crossed buns and toured the easter food market and watched the sunset across the Harbour Bridge Pathway before heading home to enjoy an easter egg I got my self an RJs netflix.
The next day was my favorite day. I had purchased a tour for the Dolphin & Whale boat cruise and arrived wearing my anti sickness wristbands, ear patches and tablets - which must have worked a treat because all I felt was pure happiness. We saw two pods of dolphins and a Bryde whale! Twice! Which could have been the same whale but still was amazing to see. The boat ride itself was so nice, turns out when I’m not worried about being sick I actually enjoy them!
I’d found a good deal on air bnb and treated my self to a room at the Heritage Hotel, partly because we had stayed there 20 years ago before flying home and it would be a perfect place to relax a bit before living in a ‘tin can’ for a year. Which it was! I had a comfy bed and coffee machine and a rooftop pool that I foolishly only used once on my last night (stop worrying about your body!).
I was right in the City which was perfect for shopping for things I needed, and all the things I definitely didn’t need but wanted - they have Typo here! I made contacts with a few people selling vans that I liked the look of, once of them I thought was perfect so was pretty confident I would be on the road soon! It was a high top but short wheel based and the passenger seat flipped round with a little pull out table - perfect right? Wronggggg, I knew straight away when seeing it that it was not my van and that sent me into panic mode and I blew off plans with RJ to Piha to view other vans over the weekend. (Sorry RJ!)
This panic went on for a good 10 days before I saw Vandalf. My parents and I had been sending posts back and forth on our “Middle Child” group chat (which I named). They had joined a few facebook groups selling vans in NZ to help me out which is adorable. I came across Vandalf which looked so huge back then I was sure I wouldn’t be interested but it was in my budget and cheaper than some of the smaller vans we had looked at so sent them a link with a message “maybe too big for just me?”. Even though I’m nearly 32 I feel I need guidance from my folks, and when it comes to very practical things I do depend on my dad’s advice and after he expressed how much he likes the transit it became top of the list. He has had plenty of experience with vans and he is all wise after all.
I met with the lovely couple selling Vandalf, they were from Poland and had bought it from a Māori man named Freddie who had done it up over covid to live and adventure in. It had such a well loved presence about it and had so much space with the biggest comfy bed! I loved the interior, and wasn’t hard to climb over the seats into the cabin which was also on my list, has anyone seen my list by the way?
Disel & Manual
Indoor kitchen
High ceiling preferred
Access to driver’s seat from back
Solar panel
Self-contained
Fixed bed, plenty of storage (jackpot)
I was almost certain this was my van but still felt nervous about the size of it so I took it for a test drive. I was a bit nervous but it felt no different to driving any other vehicle besides making sure I allowed more space for the length. I told the couple I was interested and would be in touch when I was sure…which was three hours later. They accepted my offer and three days later, Vandalf was mine.
